NEW YORK, N.Y. — Wheat, corn and soybeans prices fell Friday on renewed concerns about ebbing demand after a massive earthquake struck Japan and consumer prices rose sharply in China, according to a report from The Associated Press.

The magnitude-8.9 offshore quake triggered a 23-foot-high tsunami that slammed into Japan’s eastern coast, both killing thousands and carrying away ships, cars and homes. The devastation left traders speculating about the potential loss of demand for many commodities. Japan is the No. 1 importer of U.S. corn and the third-largest oil importer in the world.

Meanwhile, China said consumer prices rose sharply in February. The inflation rate was at 4.9 percent, unchanged from January. Food price inflation unexpectedly accelerated to 11 percent from January’s 10.3 percent rate, according to the AP.

Analysts told the AP China may impose additional steps to try to curb inflation in wake of the report. That could diminish demand for an array of commodities, from copper to soybeans. In Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) agriculture contracts for May delivery Friday, wheat fell 21.75 cents to settle at $7.1875 a bushel, corn lost 18.5 cents to $6.6425 and soybeans gave up 21 cents to $13.345.

According to an early Monday article from Bloomberg, however, corn futures were rebounding after the weekend. Corn for May delivery climbed 0.4 percent to $6.6675 a bushel in Chicago at 4:24 p.m. Singapore time, after swinging between gains and losses of 0.8 percent.

“Importers are seeking cheap corn supplies,” Ker Chung Yang, an analyst at Phillip Futures Pte., told a Bloomberg reporter by phone from Singapore. “The downside is limited because global supply remains tight.”

Japan has asked an industry group to release feed grains including corn from stockpiles to ensure supply after the March 11 earthquake, the agriculture ministry said in a statement. That will mean Japan will need to return to the import market to rebuild stockpiles later, Ker said. The disaster is unlikely to dent the nation’s import needs, Ker said. Still, corn demand from Japan may decline as the disaster disrupted grain-unloading operations and feed production, Eri Utamaru at the agriculture ministry’s livestock department, said Monday to Bloomberg. The nation may have lost about 20 percent of its feed production, she said.

The four ports affected are Hachinohe in Aomori prefecture, Kamaishi in Iwate prefecture, Ishinomaki in Miyagi prefecture and Shiogama in Miyagi prefecture, she said.

Zen-Noh, Japan’s top buyer, told Bloomberg Monday that operations to unload U.S. corn from vessels were suspended since the earthquake because of power outages. It operates the largest grain facility in eastern Japan at Kashima port in Ibaraki prefecture, north of Tokyo, the farmers’ cooperative said.

The Kashima facility represents more than 15 percent of Zen-Noh’s total capacity for grains. Zen-Noh produces about 30 percent of Japan’s total livestock feed of about 24 million metric tons a year.

“Japan is a major grain importer, so the earthquake is definitely hurting prices,” C.S. Oh, head of overseas futures team at NH Investment & Futures Co., told Bloomberg. “Overall, investor sentiment across the board has weakened significantly in the wake of the quake as uncertainties grow.”